Less than four inches square and an inch tall (the exact size of the 2nd generation Apple TV) the small but mighty Apple TV 3rd Generation adds the ability to play 1080p HD content.

The backside of the Apple TV 3rd Generation features the same exact ports as the previous iteration:

• AC adapter port
• HDMI output port
• Micro-USB (for service and support)
• Optical audio out port
• 10/100 Base ethernet port

With little effort from our part, we dive right into the Apple TV by removing the snap-on base.

Once inside, we notice an immediate difference from the Apple TV 2nd Generation, the lack of a thermal pad.

• Perhaps the "new" A5 processor doesn't get as hot?

A quick turn of our screwdriver frees the metal heat sink.

Under the metal heat sink resides a small thermal plate, just like in the previous generation.

The logic board is held in place by the power supply connector, but that's no problem for our spudger. A quick flick and the logic board is free.

So far, this device has been significantly easier to crack open than last week's iPad 3. We have a feeling the trend will continue with the Apple TV, since we just took out almost everything inside.

Clearing this casing is fast and easy. The power supply is one of the few parts left.

The rating of the power supply is 3.4V at 1.75A, which is identical to the 2nd Gen Apple TV's 5.95 watts.

If it ain't broke, why fix it?

The last remaining part in the Apple TV is the status LED.

Logic board is disassembled next, but first a quick message from our favorite sponsor, us:

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The bottom side of the logic board:

• Apple A5 Single Core processor

  • The A5 PoP assembly breaks down into a Hynix LP DDR2 SDRAM and an application processor that carries the part number APL2498 and 8942C01 (third image). Thanks Chipworks!
• Toshiba THGVX1G6D2HLA01 8GB NAND Flash
• Broadcomm BCM4330 (appears to be the same chip in the iPad 3rd Generation).
• Apple 343S0479
• Apple 338S1040